BioCouture (blog) is a research project which uses microbial produced cellulose to produce clothing. Their ultimate goal is to grow a dress in a vat of liquid. Is genetically engineered clothing the future of the industry?

Gregory Karbnick is a researcher scholar at the Hasting Center who studies bioethics. In the following video he gives a brief testimony at the House Committee on Energy and Commerece in 2010. In this testimony he talks about the ethics of the field of Synthetic Biology. He divides the ethical issues into two categories: intrinsic concerns and concerns about potential consequences – and makes a case that regulation and governance of the field should come primarily from the latter category. Watch the video after the break.

Juan Enriquez is a well respected futurist – who specifically looks at biotechnology and its role in the future. He is the founding director of the Life Sciences Project at Harvard Business School, CEO of Biotechnomy LCC, and the writer of numerous influential articles. Over the past decade he has given four TED talks, covering different visions of the future. After the break you can find each of his talks – including his latest talk from TED (posted yesterday): “Will our kids be a different species?”. These are definitely mandatory viewing for anyone interested in the future.

In the 80s a new science fiction literary genre emerged – cyberpunk. Cyberpunk is fiction which is high tech but low life, taking the classic dystopian themes of science fiction in a very grungy direction. This movement spawned a related social movement of those who enjoyed and engaged with the cultures so important in these works. But this article isn’t about cyberpunk, its about two different genres which came out of cyberpunk – biopunk and steampunk. These two genres are vastly different from each other – and yet there is something inescapably similar about them. Why do steam and genes go so well together?

Drew Endy is an important figure in the world of synthetic biology, being one of the first influential pioneers in the field. In the short informal video below he gives a excellent concise description of what synthetic biology is in his opinion. Check it out after the break.

The Synthetic Bestiary is a website about Synthetic Biology, Genetic Engineering and the Future. It is a hub of information about these fields and fields related to them. This site aims to inspire as much as it informs, so stick around – you might learn something.

This website was created by Myles O’Neill. The website’s logo includes the artwork ‘Draco Primordialis’ by Kaytara which is used with permission. The views and opinions expressed on this website are soley those of the original authors or interviewees.